The Manchester Early Summer Carnival
A “How I Spent My Summer Vacation: I became a Girl” Gaiden
by
Rebecca Coleman
-1-
A Proposal
I think there is something of an unwritten rule that most small towns in Mississippi have to have at least one good barbecue place. For Manchester that was the old Greyhound bus station turned barbecue house, a modest little place called Ubon's. Ubons was not the only barbecue place in Manchester, there was another place down the road called Dusters. But well nobody really liked Dusters as the owner was a bitter old man named West, who had been forced to retire from the air force because of his failing eyesight.
Anyway, it was one of those nights that neither I or Aunt Flora felt like cooking. Of course we could have gotten something delivered to the house, but neither of us were in the mood for pizza. And ordering a pizza from the local Pizza Hut was like playing Russian Roulette with a loaded handgun. So, with that in mind we firmly made up our minds to dine out.
But where? I would have loved to go to the local Hibachi place. Aunt Flora would have loved to go Mexican, she adored Mexican cooking just as much as I adored Hibachi. Turns out neither were open on a Tuesday Night. The Hibachi it turns out was only closed one night a week and that happens to be on a Tuesday Night. And the Mexican place was having trouble with their water. Of course there's more than one Mexican place in town. I mean last time I counted I counted three in total. But the one Aunt Flora liked the most was located on Canal Street right across from the police station.
Anyway, we decided on Ubons because if I could not have Hibachi and Aunt Flora could not have Mexican then it would have to be barbecue. Anyway the inside of the Ubon's was not really crowded this Tuesday evening. It was still hovering around the first of the month and so most of the townspeople were still waiting on their monthly checks. Like most southern towns that lacked a lot of heavy industry and depended heavily on agriculture most of the people in down depended on government programs such as Food Stamps, Social Security, and if they were lucky their pensions to make ends meet. Most however lived paycheck to paycheck.
And so with it still being around the first of the month, nobody really had the money to eat out. So Aunt Flora and I pretty much had the whole place to ourselves.
“It's pretty good.” Aunt Flora said to me as she took a bite from her mountain of pulled-pork. Aunt Flora and I had both settled on the “Ubon's Famous: Barbecue Princess Platter” , a kind of sample platter that included a generous portion of pulled-pork, a staple of the south. Smoked brisket, sliced thin and smoked long and slow, a link of smoked sausage, and a few ribs. All this with two sides of your choice and all the bread you can eat. For sides I'd decided on fried okra and fries. Aunt Flora had decided to bake beans and coleslaw.
“It's a nice change of pace.” I said taking a bite from one of my ribs. “Kind of glad to get a break from cooking you know.” I added.
Aunt Flora smiled a little and nodded her head.
“You're like your mother.” Aunt Flora said as she took another fork full of pulled-pork. “Your mother was one of the best cooks in the family. Just like our mom. On the other hand, I'll burn water.” She said smiling.
I nodded my head and decided to sample their pulled-pork. It tasted okay, but it was nothing to write home about. Nor did I think it was worthy of all the praise all the so called top-rated food critics heaped on it.
“So.. Emily.” Aunt Flora said, smiling a little as she peered at me. “I have a favor to ask you”
At that moment I stopped chewing and just looked at my beloved aunt who had boldly stepped up to fill the shoes my late mother had left empty.
“There is going to be an early summer carnival this weekend at the fairgrounds. It's kind of a big thing. It generated a lot of talk around town. There will be food trucks, rides, and attractions. And well, the hospital I work at, rented a dunking booth from Manchester Attractions.” Aunt Flora said.
I nodded my head and decided at that moment to take a sip from my glass of ice tea, sweetened of course.
“So you volunteered to get dunked?” I asked with a little too much pepper.
Aunt Flora did not seem to notice the pepper, instead she took another fork full of her pulled-pork before chewing down a rib. She then took a long sip from her glass of ice tea.
“Not quite.” Aunt Flora. “While I'm sure the public would love to see us nurses and doctors in the dunking booth. I'm afraid there are not enough of us to go around. We barely have enough hands on deck as is. We can't really afford to pull anybody off shift to staff the thing” Aunt Flora blushed a little.
I raised my eyebrow.
“So right now we're looking for volunteers. Now, I know you volunteered to play 'Dotty' and you raised a lot of money for our town's only no-kill animal shelter and you did a really amazing job. And I'm proud of you.” Aunt Flora said. “So I was hoping you'll volunteer. It's for a good cause.”
I felt my cheeks starting to flush a little as I peered toward Aunt Flora who just smiled a little.
“You see, we're using the dunking booth to raise money to buy toys for the pediatric ward. The Board of Directors are a bunch of greedy old men and don't want to open the purse to buy things like stuffed animals, coloring books and sticker books for children on the ward.” Aunt Flora said.
I nodded my head.
“Plus by your volunteering, you'll earn some major brownie points with the community.” Aunt Flora then started to smirk a little. “Plus, your boyfriend would be there. Jack's mom is a nurse and she and I often work the same nine to five shifts on the cutting room floor. Anyway Jack's mom told me that you two have been getting a little close. And well.. she volunteered her son cause that's just what some moms do.”
As soon as Aunt Flora mentioned Jack's name I started to blush up a storm. I could feel my cheeks starting to heat up a bit. The idea of Jack sitting in a dunking booth, wearing nothing more than a pair of form fitting swim trunks. Swim trucks that fitted every curve of his body. His well toned and developed body. Oh and I bet he would be blushing too! That mental image was just too sexy to be spoiled by words.
“Plus.” She said smiling. “You'll get into the fair free of charge, I'll be sure to buy you another bikini, I mean I know you already have a bikini. But we brought that suit before you started on HRT. You might have developed a little.. I also think you've grown a little too.”
I smiled a little at this.
“Really?” I said as I smiled across the table at Jack.
“Well your breasts are getting bigger. A few months ago they were flat as a board. Now there like the size of grapefruits or something. You're getting a lot more moody. I mean like I said last spring, you were kind of void of emotions. Nothing really seemed to bother you. Now you have really weird mood swings. Also.. you getting snippy. All in all, you're displaying the signs of a female going through puberty.. though a few years too late, as most girls go through puberty through the ages of eight and thirteen. Being close to fifteen you're about two years too late, but then again we can just tell your classmates you're a late bloomer.” Aunt Flora said.
I blinked.
“So are you going to volunteer or not?” I could tell by the tone of her voice that Aunt Flora was getting tired of me beating around the bush and she was now looking for a solid 'Yes' or 'No' question.
“Sure..” I said.
“Okay good! Also, just so you know. They finally probated your mothers will.” Aunt Flora's voice changed. I could feel a sudden surge in emotions as she mentioned my late mother and of course her will.
“Your mother left the house to your older brother, that was to be expected.” Aunt Flora said, taking a deep breath. “I'm not sure what he's going to do with it. Maybe he's going to sell the thing or move in. I'm not sure what his plans are for the future. Anyway, your sister got her car, her china, her jewelry and stuff.” Aunt Flora sighed and nodded her head again.
“Okay.. was there anything left for me?” I said tilting my head to the side.
“Well yes.” Aunt Flora said smiling. “It seems when your mother divorced your father. Your father was ordered by the judge that oversaw the divorce case to hand over a lot of the wealth your father brought to the marriage. It seems your father owned a lot of shares in some major oil companies located down south toward the coast. So, you were left the oil and mineral rights to those wells. Now, my mother, your grandmother, also owned some oil and mineral rights. And around four hundred acres of farmland near some rustic settlement called Sharbrough's Landing. When she passed, right before your mother. Everything was split fifty-fifty. Between your mother and I. I got half the oil and mineral rights, she got half the oil and mineral rights. I got two hundred acres of prime cotton ground.. that I rented to some Sharbrough guy and she got two hundred acres of prime cotton ground that she rented to the same guy.”
“Anyway, you're getting the mineral rights and two hundred acres of prime farmland in the Mississippi Delta..” Aunt Flora said smiling, her smile reaching from one ear to the other. “So.. that's that!”
“Also your mother's bank account at the time of her death was roughly around one hundred thousand dollars. Thirty thousand will go to your brother, another thirty thousand would go to your sister, and the remaining forty thousand will be given to you. So right now, you're one of the richest teenagers in the state of Mississippi.”
I blinked.
“This is like a damn anime..”
And so that's how another chapter in my life came to a close. With me discovering that I was one of the richest teenagers in the state of Mississippi.
The Manchester Early Summer Carnival
A “How I Spent My Summer Vacation: I became a Girl” Gaiden
By
Rebecca Coleman
-2-
Searching for the Perfect Bathing Suit
The Pecan Mall was the mecca center of teenage culture here in this backwooded town called Manchester. Going to the mall was the highlight of my weekend. The mall was pretty much one massive corridor that was lined with all manner of shops. The mall was anchored by two large regional department stores. On the east side one had J.C Pennies, and on the west side one had Belks. In the middle you had a massive concrete water fountain.
Between J.C Pennies and Belks you had a wide variety of boutiques and shops. My favorite being Books-A-Million and Rue 18. Books-A-Million always seem to have a sale going on. And I brought most of my manga from there. Rue 18 also had the cutest clothes one could ever hope to find. Though it was a step down on the social ladder. Hollisters and Aeropostale at the top of the ladder. Rue 18 was a few steps down, another step down would be Gothic Topic.
Toward the bottom of the ladder there would be Rainbow and the other knock off sale shops. Now if I had my way I would have gone to one of the fashionable boutiques. You know the ones that were geared toward the whole beach life vibe.
Anyway this afternoon, I found myself standing in the Junior section of Belks. While my aunt browsed through the racks of one piece bathing suits, bikinis and such. Now, I’m going to say it again, if I had my way I would have gone to one of the more fashionable boutiques. But my lovely aunt, who had taken on the role as mother and had lifted on her shoulders the responsibility of raising me to adulthood.
“Emily.” My aunt Flora said, taking a deep breath as she peered toward me. “I’m kind of having second thoughts about this. I mean you are developing.” She said as she released her just taken breath.
“I mean.” I said as I reached down and tucked a loose strand of my hair behind my ear. “I’m not really thrilled about sitting in a ducking booth. While half the town lines up and drop five of their greasy dollars for three chances to hit a trigger that is the size of a dime.”
Aunt Flora peered at me.
“I’m quite sure you're going through puberty again. This time you're going through puberty again as a girl.” Aunt Flora said as she hung her head down. “I guess I better get used to you being sharky and snappy. If you're anything like your mother was when she was going through puberty. Then I might need to invest in two things.”
“And what were those two things?” I asked as I peered toward my aunt.
“Frozen Pizza and ibuprofen. And I guess I need to get into the habit of reminding myself each day that you're undergoing second puberty. And that instead of wanting to ground you for life, or to take you over my knee and spank some sense into you. That I need to remind myself how painful puberty was for me. And how your body is starting to change.”
I felt my cheeks starting to blush a little. Feeling slightly embarrassed I turned my head away from my aunt.
“Come on Emily.” My Aunt Flora said, smiling a little. “I was just teasing you. All and all I think you’re handling your second puberty a lot better than your mom and I did.” She said smiling. “Anyway, I think we need to get down to business.”
“To defeat the Huns?” I said folding my arms across my chest. That was a reference to Disney’s cult classic Mulan. Now I was not really a Disney girl. But recently I've started rewatching some old Disney movies. Among those were “Beauty and the Beast”, “The Little Mermaid”, and last but not least “The Princess and the Frog.”.
“No, I’m afraid we're not saving China from a massive horde of invading Xiongnu.” Aunt Flora said, smiling a little as she rolled her eyes. “We are, however, we are on a mission to find you a bathing suit that I’m okay with you wearing.” She added.
“Way to pop my bubble.” I said with a sigh.
“But really, Emily, I figured you were more of a Eownyn of Rohan than a Hau Mulan. Though both share some common characteristics. Like both were women who disguised themselves as men in order to ride off to war. Both saw battle. Both were later discovered as women after they had been wounded in the battle. I think the only difference was Eownyn did not cut her hair, And Hau Mulan did.”
“I kind of fancy myself more like Eownyan.” I said with a small smile. “A flaming strawberry blonde haired version of Eownyn.”
“Fine.” Aunt Flora said. She then paused and held up her hand.
“Okay, first let’s go over a few ground rules. Number one, since I’m buying the suit. And yes I’m aware that you have more than enough money to buy your own suit. I’ll just feel better if I was the one buying it for you. I hope you understand.” Aunt Flora paused.
“Okay.” That's all I could really say.
“Okay. Now, first off. I’m going to limit you to one piece suits only. Now if we were going to either the beach or to the water park. I’ll allow you to wear a two piece suit or even a bikini. Because other girls would be wearing more or less the same thing.” Aunt Flora seemed flustered.
“What's the difference?” I asked.
“The difference is that you’ll be sitting in a ducking booth. And it’s a fast drop down into the water. The last thing we need is you flashing the crowd if your top comes flying off. Plus, a modest one will hide the fact that you’ve not had the bottom operation.” Aunt Flora's face looked flat as an iron skillet.
I felt my cheeks flush with color.
“Did you have to bring that up?” I whined.
“Facts of life sweetheart.” Aunt Flora said, sighing. “If we were going to the beach, you could get away with wearing a swimming skirt and a bikini top. I’ll just have to help you with the knot to make sure your top does not come flying off. Though waves can really knock you down. Same with the water park. I’ll have to help you tie a really strong knot. “
“Fine..” I said blushing a little.
And so the search started in earnest. Fast forward half an half an hour and I’d gone through fifteen suits. All fifteen had either been rejected by my aunt Flora or rejected by me. After all I was the one wearing the suit and I felt like a voice in the matter.
Finally, we settled on a suit. It was a blue suit, a solid navy blue suit that was a one piece.
“That suit is perfect.” My Aunt Flora said. “For one it is a one piece suit. So it is modest and yet flattering. Also since it’s a nice one piece, we can add a gaff like bikini bottom under the suit. To hide your bulge.”
I flushed.
“Aunt Flora..” I said, whimpering a little.
“Better safe than sorry honey. Plus, like I said, you will be sitting in the ducking booth for an hour.” Aunt Flora paused. “Unless you volunteer to cover somebody else’s shift.”
And that is how another chapter in the ongoing saga that is my daily life came to an end.
To Be Continued.
“
The Manchester Early Summer Carnival
A “How I Spent My Summer Vacation: I became a Girl” Gaiden
By
Rebecca Coleman
-3-
Emily tries to use the move “Flirt”... Is it Super Effective!?
The Manchester Summer Carnival was located in a four acre plot of land that had once in the distant past housed the once thriving Manchester Auto Company, but a few years ago the Manchester Auto Company had filed for bankruptcy. The buildings belonging to the old auto company had sat for some years abounded and falling into disrepair. Until the city had brought it, once the city had brought it, they quickly demolished the buildings and carted off the remaining debris. Leaving a flat, smooth surface. Anyway it had been this location that the Chamber of Commerce of Manchester had selected to host the carnival.
Now, I've been volunteered by my aunt to take the twelve to one shift. That twelve in the afternoon until one in the afternoon. Anyway the gates opened at ten o'clock in the morning. The normal admission of twelve dollars had been waived for me since I'd volunteered to staff the dunking. Which was a good deal for me, because from what I could see the carnival was not really worth paying twelve dollars to get in.
Anyway, my outfit for that day was a simple Pokemon graphic teeshirt that featured the Franchise mascots, Pikachu and a pair of denim daisy duke shorts and blue and white trainers. Strapped across my shoulder was a pink canvas messenger bag that was decorated with a number of buttons and pins. I'd decided to wear my swimsuit under the shirt and shorts. Anyway, once I was through the front gates, I started to roam around. After all, I had two solid hours to burn away before it was my turn to sit in the dunking booth.
I kind of allowed my feet to be my guide, if that makes sense. And quickly I found myself being swept off my feet. I'll do my best to put what I was feeling into words. You see I'd spent the last year and a half of my life living my life through the eyes of my character. Like I've mentioned before I'd favored spending most of my free time lurking and posting on Harvest Moon Roleplaying Forums.
And well the mainstay of those roleplaying forums were community based events that board moderators would put together. It was those community events allowed all of the players of the board regardless of their skill level or level of character development to freely mingle with other players and focus on developing their characters. I cherished those events because they allowed me to respit from the daily, sometimes hourly hell I was going through.
And then all of a sudden I stopped dead in my tracks, and rising up in front of me was the King of the Carnival, the fabled and mystic Ferris Wheel. And well my heart jumped from my chest right into my throat. I felt my sunburned cheeks starting to flush an even dark hue of red. I felt my breath being stole away.
“I need this to happen, today!” I said taking a deep breath, “It would be a picture perfect Disney movie ending!”
Now, allow me to explain something to you for a moment. Trust me it won't take long. If you've been reading these stories you will know that I'm really big into anime and that I love reading Shoujo manga. And well three things always seem to happen in any long running shoujo manga. One the main girl always seems to end up wearing a classic, risque version of a French Maid uniform. Number two, the main girl always end up wearing a bunny suit, and number three before any of those take place, the main girl and the boy she has a huge crush on but is to shy to confess her feelings too he and her end up stuck on a farris wheel together.
They just end up riding together in one of those carriages or are they called capsules. Anyway they always end up sharing the carriage or capsule together and sometimes they share a kis. Sometimes it is a deep, romantic kiss, the kind of kiss that makes hands wander. And sometimes it just a light, playful peck on the cheeks.
“What would be perfect?” A voice called out from behind me.
Upon hearing the voice I quickly spun around it was then I noticed that standing behind me was my geeky boy crush. And well he was half-naked. Okay, standing behind me was my soon to be boyfriend Andrew Jackson, and he was dressed in nothing but a pair of form fitting swim trucks, his inward curving chest was hairless and I could see the start of a budding six pack in the middle of his chest. His hair was starting to grow out a little, it now reached down to his shoulders, and his fashion had started to change from Gothic Topic Model social model reject to more casual country boy who sometimes dabbled in Gothic Fashion.
I felt my face, including my ears, flush red with color.
“Andy!” I said blushing as I turned my face to hide my blush. “What happened to your shirt! I mean you're just casually strolling around the fairground in just a cheap, dollar store brand of plastic sandals and your blood swim trunks!”
“..You sound like my mom.” Andy said blushing he then turned his head. “Anyway, if you must know, my mom volunteered me for the dunking booth. I'm heading there now.” He was really blushing,
“Oh!” I said a wicked little grin forming on my face.
“Anyway, what are you doing here? I thought you would be in your room. Playing Harvest Moon, or Star Valley, or maybe roleplaying on the internet or on Discord.” He said, grinning a smile that made me flush. “You look cute though, I'd never figured you out as a Pokemon trainer type girl. Sorry I can't see you running through tall grass, climbing over mountain tops, crawling through graveyards, and picking your way through marshes and swamps to find and enslave cute little creatures that just say their name over and over again. And have powers to frighten God himself.”
“...”
Andy just smiled.
I then reached up and pinched his ear between my two fingers. I then pulled him down and yelled at the top of my lungs.
“BAKA!” Not my proudest moment but then again what a transgender anime fan is supposed to do?
Of course I released him after a few seconds. I mean people were starting to look, and whisper behind the back of their hands. I mean Andy and I often drew attention to ourselves whenever we were about. Oftentimes it was the good kind of attention.
“Okay! Okay!” Andy whined. “I'm sorry! I'm sorry!”
I smiled and peered at him.
“It's fine, forgive me. But as punishment you gotta buy me an extra large ice cream cone, chocolate swirl with chopped nuts and chocolate sauce!” I said smiling. “After your shift of course!”
Any rolled his eyes.
“Anyway when does your shift start?” I asked.
“It was supposed to start three minutes ago.” He said blushing as he started to edge away fro me. “I'm working the ten to eleven shift!” He called out.
“I'm working the twelve to one shift!” I called out as he started to quicken his pace. “Maybe before my shift we could get lunch together! I'll buy it!” Now, I know what you're thinking. Emily, your boyfriend is supposed to buy you lunch, you're not supposed to buy him lunch. And well that might be true. But let me tell you something, any good Southern Belle knows if you want your boyfriend to treat you like a princess you damn well better treat him like a prince. You buy him lunch, he takes you out for ice cream afterwards. He buys the movie tickets, you buy the snacks. He buys you that manga you want. You buy him that manga he wants.
“Sure! I'll buy ice cream too!” He called out as he almost vanished from view. “And maybe after our shifts we can hook up and explore the fair!”
And so another chapter comes to an end.
The Manchester Early Summer Carnival
A “How I Spent My Summer Vacation: I Became a Girl” Gaiden
by
Rebecca Coleman
-4-
Sights and Sounds!
It seemed the whole of Manchester had decided to turn out for the carnival. The lot was filled with people, all dressed in summer casual clothing. The carnival was one half flee-market, quarter adventure park, and quarter food truck heaven. Aunt Flora had been blessed with the foresight of giving me my allowance for the week, and a little more for volunteering for the dunking booth. So I had plenty of cash to my name. Well plenty of cash if I did not squander it on knick-knacks.
And trust me their were plenty of people selling knick-knacks. There were dozens, and dozens of local merchants had set up frame tents with long tables under them. The tents shield the merchants from the harsh sun above and the tables were just draping with their wares. Some even had fans to provide a bit of cooling breeze to help ward off the heat.
You could find anything, one guy was selling retro gaming gear, and games, another woman was selling hand painted flower pots. Another guy was selling comic books and manga, another woman was selling second hand clothing and shoes. Another guy was selling hand crafted knives.
All of the merchants would stand by their tables and hawk their wares at the top of their lungs. Cash here though was king, no visa cards, no master cards, no discover cards, not even paypal was allowed. Everybody wanted cold hard cash. And the princes were insane too!
But after thirty minutes of roaming around I did find a few things I wanted. I found an old woman was selling second hand books, most of them were old paperbacks that had seen better days. Like the paper had turned from a whitish color to a more yellowish color. The colors on the front cover were fading and some even smelled a bit musty. But hidden among the rubbish I found a few slightly used manga's from a series I followed.
I felt bad, most used manga goes for around six to maybe seven dollars a pop if from a popular series, the new, slightly used second hand stuff goes for a little more. But she had a whole collection of 'YuYu Hakusho' for just twenty five dollars. Let me break that down, that the whole freaking series, we were talking around twenty tomas for around twenty five dollars. And from what I could tell, all were in near mint condition.
I felt like a thief as I forked over a twenty and a ten and told the old lady she could keep the change. Her eyes went as wide as saucer plates as she looked and the twenty and ten dollar bills in her hand. But the shock soon wore off as she quickly placed the two bills into her pocket and smiled as she watched me collect the box that held the whole collection.
“I never knew young folks loved those Japanese comics so much!” She said as she watched me haul the box off. “I got those from my grandson. He was going off to college and was getting rid of stuff. I told him I'll sell them for him.” She said smiling.
I nodded my head, and breathed a silent prayer under my breath.
“When I was your age it was all about 'Nancy Drew' and 'Cherry Adams' those were the books young ladies read when I was your age. Of course, that was right after the war of course. We still saw the Japanese as 'Japs' and hated them something fearsome because they bombed our battleships. Never understood why so many people fell in love with their characters.” She said gleaming at at me.
I wanted to say something but I did not.
“Also when I was your age. We did not go around wearing pants. Our mothers would have tanned our asses if we did. Only girls who were looking to get picked up would be seen showing that much leg. A woman has to save something for the bedroom. If you go around flashing your goods around, nobody is going to want to take them home. You know that right?” She said as she settled back down in her seat she then fixed her eyes firmly on me.
“I guess.' I said inching my way away.
“My grandmother told me when I was your age. 'Edith' was my name. 'If a man can buy the milk straight from the cow, there is no sense in him buying the cow'. It took me a while to understand what she was saying, but what she was trying to say is, if you give the boys all the attention they want. If you let them kiss you, squeeze your tits, play with your kitten. Stick their fingers into your kitten, and ride you like a Memphis trolley from sunset to sunrise. Then they're not going to put a ring on your finger.”
“...” I wanted to hurl. I wanted to scream. I wanted to just run like hell..
“Yes ma'am.” I said blushing as I shook my head to clear that mental image away.
“And the way you're dressed, showing your bare legs, you bare arms. You look like a Memphis trolley that is just looking for a rider.” She said as she leaned back into her chair. “Not trying to be rude girl, just trying to tell you, we women gotta look after each other, help each other. Build each other up. And that means being frank with each other.”
I bolted then.
Thirty minutes later I found myself sitting under the cooling shade of a tent belonging to the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. Or just Shriners. A Masonic group.. they were cooking hot dogs and hamburgers and beef steaks, they also had ic cold A&W rootbeer for a dollar a can. I was three cans in and shaking like a leaf facing the first cold breath of autumn. That old woman and thrown me for a loop.
I mean, had she just called me a 'Slut' in a very roundabout way.And the talk about boys 'Squeeze my tites' and 'Stick their fingers into my kitten' had just shook me to the core. I mean Aunt Flora had warned me that I might get some boy attention when I started transiting. Mom, bless her heart, had not been well enough to give me the 'Birds and the Bee's' talk when she was alive. Cancer was eating her alive and daily I had to contend with the horrors of watching her slowly transform into a living skeleton right in front of my very eyes. So you know sex was the last thing on my mind.
And damnit all! I did not have a 'Kitten' that just.. OH God that made me want to march myself to the bathroom and wash my own mouth out with soap just thinking about that. I felt unclean. Sure I'd thought about kissing a boy but that's it! Heck if Andy reached down below my waist line he'll not find a 'Kitten' but a 'Stick'.
At that moment I reached over and picked up the can of A&W rootbeer, it was still pretty cold and I chugged it. I drained it in one go. I then crossed the can and tossed it over my shoulder and somehow it found it's way into a nearby trashcan.
“Another one.”
“Afraid I gotta cut you off. That's your fourth soda young lady.” Said a Shriner behind the wooden counter. Was dressed in a white cotton, long sleeve shirt with brown buttons and dust colored pants. He had dark jade colored eyes, and short cropped blonde hair. I could see on his third finger a large golden ring that must have weighed a ton. And on his head was a red fez hat.
I mutter something under my breath.
“If I order one of those heart attacks on a buns would you allow me to get a few more cans of soda?” I asked as I looked up from the barstood. The 'Heart attack on a Buns' was of course the cheap sausage dogs they were selling. It was the cheap kind of smoked sausage, the kind you could buy in bulk from any meat shop. From the look and smell of the stuff it was Red Rope, a kind of mock smoke sausage that was famous here in Mississippi. Red Rope was a staple in any meat market, and you could normally find it in the 'Pick Five' section.
Red Rope was not smoked sausage, it was bits and bobs of chicken, beef, and pork that had been stuffed into a casing that always seemed to get stuck between one tooth. Each sausage dog was a long link of this cheap, smoked sausage that had been nestled on a cheap hotdog bun and piled high with colorful peppers. In short, if you eat one, you will be shitting it out in the next hour or so.
“Sorry..” The Shriner said. “I gotta cut you off.”
I muttered something under my breath as I climbed down from the wooden bar stool and left the tent. Hauling my box of manga with me. I figured I'll go check the dunking booth out. Andy should be almost through with his shift. Maybe I would get a chance to dunk him.
And so that brings another chapter to a close.
The Manchester Early Summer Carnival
A “How I Spent My Summer Vacation: I Became a Girl” Gaiden
by
Rebecca Anna Coleman
-5-
Dunking Booth, Hibachi and a Boyfriend
The Dunking booth was located at the far north side of the carnival. It took me a good fifteen minutes to reach it. I was starting to understand the physical layout of the carnival. In the center you had the 'Bazaar'. Here in the 'Bazaar' you would find all the merchants selling their goods. This was a flea market like area. From here if you traveled east one would find the food trucks and all the food stalls. From here one would need to travel north to find the rides. And from there one would travel west to see all the attractions. Down south was the ticket booth and parking lot.
The dunking booth was located on the west hand side. Here one would find all the side-shows and games of skill and chance. One game was a classic, one would pay five dollars and be given five balls, and one would use those five balls to knock down a pyramid of empty milk bottles. Another one was where one would use a basketball and try to shoot a hoop into a moving target. Another one you tossed plastic rings into dozens of milkcrates that were filled with empty, glass bottles.
All these were classic games of skill and chance, all of them offered a stuffed animal as a prize. How big of a stuffed animal depended on how well you did. And standing out among all these attractions, towering among the rest was the dunking booth. A giant tank that was filled with close to three hundred gallons of ice cold water. And perched above this tank, surrounded by a mesh of chicken wire was a brave boy.
The boy was shirtless, his body was dripping with beads of water. His face was flushed red and he seemed to be shivering. His hair was dripping wet and he seemed well embarrassed.
“Having fun?” I said as I neared the dunking booth.
“Tons.” The boy said, taking a deep breath.
“How is the water?” I asked as I eased my box down.
“Cold.” He said, giving me a loop sided smile. “Freezing cold, just before my shift, that clown dude. The one that was running around here looking like the son of Pennywise and Annabelle.. he poured like four, twenty pound bags of ice into water.”
I blinked.
“Sounds like fun.” I said, smirking.
“If you consider getting dunked over and over again into the worlds largest glass of ice water 'Fun' then sure.” He sid smiling a little. “I consider it torture.”
“Hey, considering it's a hundred and fifteen today, getting dunked over and over again into the world's largest glass of ice water does sound like a cool and refreshing day to spend at least an hour or so of your time.”
“Wait till it's your turn!” He said blushing a little.
A crooked little smile formed upon my lips, the guy running the dunking booth was off somewhere. I guess he was off draining the snake or something, so I slipped over the yellow throw line that had been spray-painted on the ground and inched my way to the trigger. Andy's eyes got wide as saucer plates as he saw me slowly moving my hand toward the trigger plate.
“What?! What are you doing Emily?!” He said blushing a little.
“Any last words?” I said, smirking a little as I held my hand inches away from the plate.
“I...” Andy was blushing so hard it was cute.
At that moment I decided to go ahead and push the trigger plate. A second later the seat holding Andy up gave way and Andy dropped like a stone in the freezing water below. Since I was standing so close to the tank I had a pretty birds eye view of the water and indeed, there were small tiny ice cubes floating around in the water. It seemed like it was hundreds if not thousands of tiny little cubes of ice just bobbing on the surface of the water. Hopefully when my turn came around those little cubes would have melted away.
And as I thought about that Andy traveled to the bottom of the tank, his bottom touched the floor of the tank and quickly he started to swim toward the surface. A second later he broke the surface of the water and took a deep breath.
“That...” Andy said blushing as he peered toward me, “Was totally uncalled for,” He said as he pushed the seat back. Instead of climbing back into the seat he climbed out of the tank.
“Sorry, but you just looked too adorable not too.” I said walking up to him. I gave him a smile and then I leaned over and kissed his wet cheeks. “Let me buy you lunch to make up for my mean trick.”
Andy blushed at the kiss and his face visibly brightened at the mention of food.
“Sure, what are we having?” He asked as he pulled a plain shirt over his shivering body.
“How does Hibachi sound?”
“Sounds good.”
Like I said before, the carnival was food truck heaven. The east side was filled with them. Anything under the sun could be found here, tacos, slices of pizza, buckets of fried chicken, chili dogs, hot dogs, hamburgers, smoked turkey legs, smoked baby back ribs, pulled pork, fried pork chops, deep fried chocolate bars, deep fried butter, deep fried coke, and anything else your twisted little heart desired.
The Hibachi food truck was painted a bright firetruck red. On the side was the face of a samurai, the samurai looked mad, like he was making the face you make when you gotta go number two but instead of getting to go and release the demons you gotta hold it. The truck belonged to 'Hiro-Sama Hibachi'. Now I've only eaten at 'Hiro-Sama' once before and it was pretty good. It was kind of pricey, but then again all the food was.
I settled on the 'Geisha Special' which was a large serving of fried rice, grilled shrimp, small, cubed pieces of steak that had also been grilled and a lobster tail. That kind of blew a hole in my wallet. Andy had settled for the 'Master Hiro Special' which was fried rice, grilled shrimp, small, cubed up pieces of steak, strips of grilled chicken breast, and also a lobster tail. I'd also ordered extra fried rice because I just love fried rice.
“So.” I said looking across the table at Andy. “How was your day going so far?”
“It's going okay.” He said blushing as he popped a fried shrimp into his mouth. “All things considered. I just spent an hour sitting in a dunking booth, that some jack-ass clown turned into a huge glass of ice water. Did I tell you the fucker looked like Pennywise's bastard son?”
“You don't like clowns do you?” I said dunking my lobster tail in a small plastic cup of liquid butter. Lobster and butter just seem to go together like I don't know bacon and eggs maybe?
“Emily..” Andy said sighing. “I hate clowns, like ever since my older sisters tricked me into going to see the reboot of 'It' I just can't stand the fuckers. I mean don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with them. Some are cool.. not that I know any clowns.. but this mother fucker just smiled and made a big show of dumping all those big bags of ice into the tank”
“Did he offer you a balloon? A red balloon?” I asked as I shoved a few more spoonfuls of fried rice into my mouth. This was the good kind of fried rice. It had a strong soy flavor that I loved, had a lot of eggs, and bits of chopped up chicken for extra flavor. I loved this kind of fried rice.
“Oh.. no..” Andy reached over and wrapped his fingers around his soda and took a long swig. I think he drained it in one gup. Seeing this I stood up and walked over to the guy running the truck and brought him another. I even opened it for him.
“No, no Emily he looked over his shoulder at me and I swear to God, this evil little fucker said, 'We float, we all float down here Andrew, your going to float too! We all float!' and I mean my blood turned like ice cold. Like I wanted to jump down from that seat and just punchthe guys lights out.”
I blinked and blinked again as I shoveled more fried rice into my mouth. Finally after a few moments of shoveling mountains of golden brown rice mixed with tiny yellow pieces of fried egg, green snow peas, and bits and pieces of onion.
“Look on the bright side.” I said
Andy blinked.
“Look on the bright side, at least he did not make a balloon animal, like what would have happened if he fashioned a long, 'fishing rod' from the balloon and chased you around the fair ground with it.”
“Kinky..” Andy said as he shoved some rice into his mouth.
“I mean there some dude selling hand-cuffs in the bazaar, I mean the freaking clown could hand-cuff you to the wall of a tent and proped you with the 'fishing rod' for the amusement of all the members of the Royal Order Big Blue Catfish..” I said blinking.
“Yes, but those are metal hand-cuffs, and not the fuzzy ones with fake animal fur in them. If the clown cuffed you with those, you'll bruise and not in a good way. Plus, you forgot about the dude selling wooden paddles.”
I blinked.
“Oh now would be a good time to tell you that an old woman called me a 'slut' today too.” I decided to share that juicy piece of information with him too.
“Was the old woman selling used paper back books, like twelve for a dollar?” Andy asked as she shoved a fork full of grilled shrimp, followed by some tasty looking chicken into his mouth.
“YES!” I bellowed as I speared some of my own grilled shrimp with my plastic fork.
“You know, my older sister, the one who tricked me into seeing 'It' she is a volunteer at the local senior care center. She knows that woman, well one day my sister went to check on her, cause nobody had heard a peep from her all morning. And they figured she had either fallen asleep or she had kicked the bucket. Anyway, returning to the story, when my sister got to the room, she noticed there were guys lined up all the way to the bingo parlor. Confused, my sister asked what was going on, it was then some old guy came stumbling out of the room. Dude had his pants around her legs, he was breathing like a race horse and was walking bow-legged. Turns out this sweet old lady was taking them two at a time and charging them fifty dollars a go.”
“...” I gazed at Andy.
“My sister said the room reeked of cum, and that the floor was littered with used condoms. Like they were everywhere. One was even stuck to the ceiling fan.”
“I'm trying to eat!” I called out.
“Hey! I have two older sisters at the house and a younger one. I've learned to just tune stuff out.” Andy said with a sigh.
And that is how my lunch date ended. One quick look at my phone told me my own date with the ducking booth was only twenty minutes away. I breathed a silent prayer, maybe the crowd would take pity on me and not decide to send me for a swim this afternoon and maybe that clown will stay away.